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Friday, October 7, 2011

Amy Lawrence Announces For Collin Co. Chair Of The Democratic Party

Amy Lawrence announced at the September meeting of the Texas Democratic Women of Collin County (TDWCC) early last week, her intention to file as a candidate for the County Chair of the Democratic Party of Collin County (DPCC) on the March 2012 Democratic primary ballot. Lawrence followed up on that announcement with a press release late last week.

In comments explaining why she decided to run for the office of Democratic County Chair, Lawrence said:

“I grew up in west Texas, but my husband and I have settled in Collin County to raise our children. I am committed to making sure this is a community we can be proud of – one where all members of our community have the opportunity to thrive.”

“Sadly, the past two years are prime examples of what can happen to a community when only one party has been in power for a generation with few viable alternatives on the ballot – we have seen our Republican representatives slash our state budgets, threatening the quality of our children’s public schools; threatening the critical safety net of Medicaid healthcare services with severe consequences for our parents and children in need; threatening the public safety of our communities by cutting law and fire department funding; and disenfranchising segments of our population, including the elderly and veterans, by creating onerous requirements on their basic right to vote. The only way we will be able to hold our elected officials accountable is by creating a strong, vibrant, and vocal Democratic Party in Collin County that can offer an alternative vision for our local communities."

"As County Chair, my focus will be on integrating the Democratic Party into the community and being vocal on issues that affect local residents, linking up with other Democratic organizations to maximize our reach and effectiveness, broadening and diversifying our base of Democratic voters and activists, and finally growing local candidates with a long-term vision for the county.”

For the past seven years, Lawrence has worked in support of civil and political rights abroad as a project manager in Washington, DC and later as a consultant for firms implementing multi-million dollar foreign aid projects funded by the US government. In early 2007, Amy and her husband moved to Cairo, Egypt, where she started up the $17M USAID-funded Combating Violence Against Women and Children project and later served as the project’s operations and communications manager.

Lawrence has been an active member of the local Democratic community since moving to Collin County in late 2008. She serves on the board of the Texas Democratic Women of Collin County as membership chair and as Democratic chair for her election precinct. During the 2010 election cycle, Amy served on the DPCC’s coordinated campaign committee and chaired the party's Get Out the Vote committee, which involved more than 150 volunteers who dedicated over 1200 volunteer hours in support of local and state Democratic candidates.

Lawrence is originally from Crosbyton, Texas and graduated from Austin College in Sherman, Texas. She married fellow Austin College graduate, Brad Lawrence, and together they have two young children – Finn, age 3, and Rowan, 6 months.

Prissy Wisnewski, former Vice President of TDWCC, Lynn Wolfe, current TDWCC board member, and Hazel Weathers, who are all Democratic Chairs of Collin Co. election precincts, say they support Lawrence's run for County Chair.

When asked to comment on Lawrence's announcement, Wisnewski said:

"Amy has lots of energy and her organizational and people skills are outstanding. With a young family, Amy is especially interested in making sure that public education and healthcare are a high priority in our community. We need people like Amy leading the way to make sure our Texas education and healthcare systems are adequately funded for the benefit of all of Texas' citizens. With Amy's skills and enthusiasm, Collin County Democrats are sure to see an increase in their voices."

Lynn Wolfe responded, "Having worked with Amy as a fellow Democratic Precinct Chair and TDWCC board member, I'm confident that her enthusiasm, energy and experience will help our local Democratic Party reach new heights, which will in turn benefit the Collin County community as a whole."

Hazel Weathers said:

“I am already so impressed with Amy’s organizational, analytical and people skills from her work with the Democratic Party of Collin County that I am happy to join the team supporting her candidacy for County Chair.

Upon seeing Amy's professional resume in September, I was so impressed with her career accomplishments that I nominated her for Altrusa International of Richardson’s 'Outstanding Women of Today' award. I hope Amy will be recognized as the top nominee in her category, 'Outstanding Woman of Tomorrow,' when winners are announced at the Awards luncheon on October 21, 2011.

Amy has youth, energy, and proven experience. She is the right leader at the right time for the Democratic Party of Collin County.”

Commenting on Lawrence's plan to run for County Chair, Jeanne Rubin, board member for Equality Texas, said:

"Amy has proved her mettle by serving as both GOTV Chair for DPCC and Membership Chair for TDWCC. She has the energy and enthusiasm we need to jump start the Democratic Party in our County in the critically important 2012 election season."

As a thirty something mother of two, Lawrence fits the profile of many people who moved into the county over the last decade to raise their family. The population of Collin Co. increased by almost 60 percent over the past decade thanks largely to people moving to the county to start and raise their families. The median age of people who now live in the county is just under 34 years of age.

Hazel Weathers is identified in Lawrence's press release as the campaign's official contact. Larry Jackson will serve as Lawrence's campaign treasurer for the necessary candidate filings with the Texas Ethics Commission.

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